Jannik Sinner booked his place in the US Open final after overcoming a valiant effort from an unwell Jack Draper in straight sets at Flushing Meadows.
Sinner needed just over three hours to confirm the triumph, ending the Briton's impressive run in New York with a 7-5 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 triumph.
The world number one impressed on serve, producing 11 aces to Draper's eight, with the Briton also serving 10 double faults, six of which came in the first set.
In a contest decided by fine margins, an opening set that saw back-to-back break points was settled by Sinner with a love game to take the early advantage.
But in testing conditions, Draper struggled and was seen vomiting, and was then unable to inflict enough damage on the Italian's service game as the second set went in the way of Sinner.
The Italian also recieved treatment to his left wrist after falling during a point he managed to win, going on to seal the win with an emphatic final set to end Draper's hopes of following in Andy Murray's footsteps at Flushing Meadows.
"First of all, me and Jack know each other very well, we are good friends off the court," Sinner started.
"It was a very physical match as we see. I just try to stay there mentally and he is so tough to beat.
"It is a very special occasion, thanks everyone for coming out. The support has been amazing. Just happy to be in the final here."
Sinner will look to secure his second major title of the year against either Taylor Fritz or Frances Tiafoe in an all-American semi-final taking place late on Friday.
Data Debrief: The Italian job close to completion
Sinner is the first Italian player to reach multiple men’s singles grand slam finals in the Open Era, and the second in tennis history after Nicola Pietrangeli.
Moving to a win-loss record of 60-18, only three players since 2000 have recorded 60 men’s singles wins in fewer grand slam matches than Sinner (78) – Carlos Alcaraz (70), Rafael Nadal (72) and Novak Djokovic (77).
Only Jimmy Connors (1974 and 1975) and Roger Federer (2004) have made the men’s singles finals at the Australian and US Open the same year, younger than the Italian (23 years and 21 days).
Gauff focused on serving up goods under new coach Daly
Coco Gauff says her main focus is on improving her serve after adding Matt Daly to her coaching team ahead of the China Open.
Daly, who has previously coached former Wimbledon semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov, has linked up with Gauff and her long-term mentor Jean-Christophe Faurel, following her split with Brad Gilbert earlier this month.
The world number six is gearing up for her first tournament since her US Open title defence ended at the hands of Emma Navarro in round four at Flushing Meadows.
Gauff, who hit 19 double-faults during that defeat, has failed to progress beyond the last 16 in any of her last five events, having previously reached three successive semi-finals at the Italian Open, French Open and Berlin Open.
But the 20-year-old is looking forward to a fresh start, and is already seeing the benefits of her work with Daly, ahead of facing Clara Burel in Beijing on Friday.
"There are other parts of my game that I want to work on, too, but the focus right now is the serve," she told the WTA Insider.
"When I serve well, I play pretty well. For me, that's the basis for my game. Already, the little bit we've done has made a drastic improvement to where I was three weeks ago.
"At this point, there's not a crazy amount, like going through a technique change or resetting everything. It's just subtle things that, doing it for a week now, will help me.
"I'm super excited about a new change and, hopefully, to improve other parts of my game.
"Working with Brad was really great and, obviously, we had a great partnership. It was just time to do a reset, a refresh and add some things in my game that I felt like I need to do to have a better season next year."
Wins for Shelton and Rune but Fritz slips up at Japan Open
Ben Shelton is confident he can retain his Japan Open crown after kickstarting his title defence with a victory over fellow American Reilly Opelka in three sets.
Shelton, who captured his maiden tour-level trophy a year ago in Tokyo, came from a set down to win 3-6 6-1 6-4 in an hour and 47 minutes on Thursday.
He came into the competition off the back of a victory over Daniil Medvedev at the Laver Cup, though Team World went on to lose the tournament in Berlin.
However, with consecutive wins under his belt, the 21-year-old American believes his previous success in Tokyo will stand him in good stead this time around.
"I have a lot of love for this tournament and this city," Shelton said. "I have a lot of confidence. Being here and knowing the situations I have come through in this exact stadium, in the most important moments."
"I think it was a tough start. I felt like I was struggling a little bit and getting rhythm. I am happy with the way I competed. Breaking serve multiple times gives me a lot of confidence."
Former Japan Open champion Taylor Fritz, though, suffered a shock first-round exit in three sets to Frenchman Arthur Fils.
Fils produced a classy performance on his tournament debut in Tokyo, handing the recent US Open finalist a 6-4 6-3 6-3 defeat.
Stefanos Tsitsipas was another big name to suffer a shock defeat, as he lost 4-6 6-1 6-2 to Alex Michelsen.
Holger Rune, however, booked his place in the next round, but was pushed all the way by Alejandro Tabilo, eventually prevailing 6-2 5-7 6-4 in the decider.
Up next for the Dane is wildcard Yoshihito Nishioka.
Sinner survives first-set scare to advance in China Open
Defending champion Jannik Sinner came from a set down to advance to the last 16 of the China Open, beating Chilean Nicolas Jarry in three sets on Thursday.
Sinner needed an hour and 55 minutes to edge past the world number 28, eventually prevailing 4-6 6-3 6-1 in Beijing.
Despite starting the contest with a love game, the Italian was broken in the seventh, with Jarry able to hold his serve to take a surprise lead.
However, the world number one responded emphatically to take the encounter the distance, despite facing four aces from his opponent.
Sinner continued his momentum in the decider, racing into an early lead after a break of serve before Jarry sent a ball long to seal the Italian's progression.
Up next for Sinner is either Roman Safiullin or Stan Wawrinka, who face each other on Friday.
Data Debrief: Sinner fights back again
Sinner is now 8-2 at on the ATP Tour in 2024 after losing the first set, with one loss coming to Stefanos Tsitsipas in Monte Carlo, who went on to win the tournament, and the other against Andrey Rublev in Montreal.
But the Italian faced a stern test from Jarry. The Chilean served 12 aces compared to Sinner's one, though the latter did ultimately save four of the five break points he faced to drag himself over the line.
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